The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God
by Chibi Reli
Summary: This is the tale of a tamer and his dog god. But this was no pair for you see, the tamer was a guy and the dog god a girl...Read about the tale of Kenshin and Kaoru as they destroy evil spirits, save the world, and much much more
1. Chapter 1

So this is a new story. It's kinda based loosely on the series InuKami with the same general idea, but not the same story line. But I hope you enjoy.

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Ch,1 – Tamer-in-Training No Longer

-

Four guys walk out of an old brick building, backpacks slung over their shoulders. They just finished another afternoon of classes, welcoming the sunshine of the summer after hours of being cooped up. "Yo Kenshin. We're going to head over to the arcade while we still have the chance to. You wanna come?" asks one of the guys, rather talk with spiky brown hair and a red headband, gnawing on a toothpick. The redhead with purple eyes walking ahead, looks back towards his friend.

"Sorry guys. I gotta get to the shrine."

"Again? Every time you go there you just come back depressed. What's going to make this time any different?" asks the brown haired guy again.

"I just have a feeling. I'll talk to you later," the redhead says, waving to his friends as he runs down the road.

-

"What makes you think you're ready to be a tamer?" an older man, long brown hair tied at the nape of his neck asks, another man with blue hair dressed in trench coat sitting beside the older man in one of the rooms of the temple. Kenshin sits a few feet away from them, a sword hilt on the ground in front.

"I've been practicing and training for a long time and lots of people have their partners already. I'm ready Uncle Hiko."

"You are far from ready. When you're ready, your partner will show himself." The man takes a sip of his tea, freshly poured by his companion, eyes looking at the cup's contents rather than at the boy.

"If I wait too much longer, I'll probably be the oldest person ever to get a partner. _Or I may not even get one at all._"

"You shouldn't worry Kenshin. Sometimes, it the very last blossom that shows the most potential. You just need to be patient," the blue haired man says, sitting completely still and no emotion crossing his face.

"Alright. I'll wait. While I'm here, would it be okay if I did some training in the back?"

"Go ahead. You do need the work." Kenshin stands to his feet, taking his weapon with him.

"Alright. Goodbye Uncle. Goodbye Aoshi." He bows to each man before taking his leave.

"You should be nicer with him Master. He is after all going to have a rough time with his partner." Aoshi says, taking some tea for himself.

"All the more reason to toughen him up."

-

"I'm never going to get a partner at this rate. I feel ready. I meditate. I practice. I do everything I'm supposed to do and still nothing. This is hopeless. Maybe I should rethink all this work," Kenshin says out loud, practicing his swordsmanship with a glowing blade connected to the once stump of a hilt. He swings towards the pond in front, watching as it makes waves on the down stroke.

"You're off," a voice says. Kenshin suddenly stops his swings, bringing it to his side and looking for the voice.

"Who's there?" he asks the air.

"Your movement is off. You pause at the beginning slightly so it's not a completely smooth move." He looks out in front of him to see a woman sitting atop of a statue in the middle of the pond.

"And how do you know that?"

"I know a lot of things. Plus, I've seen plenty of skilled swordsmen over the years and they don't pause," she says, looking at her reflection in the water and swishing her feet back and forth.

"Who are you?"

"Who are you?"

"I'm Kenshin. I'm a tamer." The woman stands up and floats towards the guy, now letting him see her fully. The girl has a heart shaped face, surrounded by black, almost blue hair that went to the small of her back and bright blue eyes that seemed like mirrors, dressed in an elaborate kimono of many layers and many colors.

"If you're a tamer, then where's your partner? I don't see one," she says floating around looking as Kenshin follows.

"I haven't chosen one yet." She stops in front of him, looking straight at him.

"Aren't they supposed to choose you?"

"You never told me what your name is." She floats back over the water, making sure he gets a full view.

"I'm Kaoru and I am a dog god. See? A tail and ears," she says, pointing to a pair of black ears and a tail that starts black at the base and gradually becomes white.

"You're a dog god?"

"Hello? Tail. Ears," she says, pointing to the appendages once again as she floats around him in circles.

"You're a dog god and you appeared to me. That must mean you're my partner. It's a bit unconventional but you did appear to me. You're not anyone's partner are you?" She stops mid air, and puts a finger to her chin, tapping in thought.

"I don't think so."

"Great. Then you must be mine. Alright, I think we have to trade now."

"Who said I'm your dog god? I don't belong to anyone," she says, finding a nice branch to perch on, looking down below her.

"But dog gods don't appear in our world unless they are someone's partner or are appearing to theirs."

"Maybe I'm special then. Anyways, I'm only willing to be the dog god of someone who's powerful and honestly you don't look to powerful. In fact, I thought you were a girl before I head you talking. Even then it was difficult to tell."

"Well look at you. You look like a , a , a raccoon more than a dog god," he says, pointing a finger at her in frustration.

"A raccoon huh? Well then, I guess you wouldn't want a raccoon as your dog god then." She lifts herself up from her branch and starts to float up. Realizing what he has said, he runs over to the tree and watches her.

"No. Wait. I'm sorry, please just don't leave. It's just that it seems like I'm never going to get a partner." He waits as he watches her disappear before appearing back in front of him.

"How about we make a deal then?"

"A deal?"

"I see why some think you're hopeless," she says, tapping his head for emphasis.

"What's the deal?"

"I will be your dog god partner and do the whole trade, destroying evil spirits and demons thing. But I don't do the whole chores, errands, cooking things unless I feel like it and I get to go out when I want of course staying relatively close by just in case and I get dessert everyday no matter what."

"That's a lot of demands for a dog god."

"Well I'm not the one who needs a partner." She watches the boy hang his head before a loud sigh is heard from his lips.

"Alright. I agree."

"Now for that traded thingy you were talking about."

"Right, we need things to make the pact. Let's see. What do I have?" Kenshin goes over to his bag a few feet away and starts looking through it as Kaoru waits in the background. After finding nothing, he closes his bag, spotting a silver sword keychain hanging from a zipper. "I guess this will do. It's a keychain my parents gave to me the first day of school. Now to find something to tie it with." He looks around and looks at Kaoru, realizing all the different ribbons decorating her kimono. He takes one of them, weaving it through the key ring then giving it to Kaoru. "A necklace." He gives it to and she puts it on with some hesitation.

"Now I give you something, right?"

"Right."

"Um…oh, I know," she says, digging through her many layers of clothing, to find a small pouch, which she opens and empties its contents into her hand. She holds the item in between her index and thumb, displaying to Kenshin.

"It's a fang. Is it yours?"

"Not mine. But it's missing something." Bringing the fang to her mouth, she gives it a kiss . "Poof." The fang disappears as Kenshin feels something suddenly on his neck. Looking into the pond, he sees the fang attached to a dark brown dog collar around his neck. He lifts his hand, feeling it between his fingers.

"A dog collar?"

"I think it looks good."

"Well, I guess that's it then," Kenshin says, walking away from the pond to collect his things.

"Now what?" Kaoru asks, following.

"Now, we go see Uncle Hiko."

-

"Uncle Hiko," Kenshin says, sliding the door to the temple room he was in a few hours ago. His uncle and Aoshi are sitting quietly, playing a game of Go.

"Finished with training already?" Hiko says, making his next move.

"I found her. I found my partner."

"You found a dog god?" Hiko says, suddenly losing interest in the game and more focused on this turn of events.

"I was practicing and she found me."

"She?" Aoshi says.

"Yeah. This is my partner Kaoru," he says moving out of the doorway in hopes of showing his partner.

"I don't see anyone Kenshin," Hiko says, a bit upset that he stopped his game. Kenshin sticks his head outside, looking back and forth searching for her.

"But I told her to wait right here." Suddenly, her form appear upside as she hangs off the roof right in front of Kenshin, sending him to his rear and he falls back in surprise.

"Hey. Did you get your uncle?" She says, looking in to see two older males looking at her with an odd expression covering their faces.

"He's right there," Kenshin says, getting up from the floor. Kaoru leaves her perch, landing gracefully next to Kenshin, her tail wagging around.

"Uncle Hiko. Aoshi. This is Kaoru."

"Kaoru? I've never heard of a dog god named Kaoru," Hiko says, looking her up and down.

"There are many a gods that are not listed under the registry because they are meant only for certain people or they just wish not to be among the others."

"But those usually have immense powers and because of that their partners are powerful, so why would you choose Kenshin?" Hiko asks.

"Because he's cute," she says, attaching herself onto Kenshin's arm and rubbing her cheek against him. Kenshin looks around trying to think of how to get out of the uncomfortable situation and decides to pet her on the head.

"Aoshi?" Hiko asks his partner.

"I don't see any problems. I sense no evil and she does have dog god qualities," Aoshi says, perking Kaoru's interest and detaching herself from Kenshin's arm.

"You think you're ready for this Kenshin? I mean, usually one's partner is the same sex as the tamer so one can see this is a strange."

"I can do it. I promise I won't let you down Uncle," Kenshin says bowing, Kaoru following after seeing what Kenshin does. As they rise back up, Hiko extends one hand towards Aoshi, who makes an envelope appear in Hiko's hand. He then extends the envelope to Kenshin who takes it and looks inside.

"Here's an extra allowance. You'll need to go by your partner some human clothes and supplies. You'll also get a monthly allowance to cover any missions."

"Thank you so much. So, when's my first mission?"

"When I give it to you. Now, why don't you go and get some supplies since the stored will be closing soon," he says, going back towards the interrupted game.

"Of course uncle. Come on Kaoru." He grabs Kaoru's wrist and takes her out.

"Right. Bye." She waves until they are out of sight and floats so that she is front of Kenshin. "So what happens now?"

"First, you need to stop flying like that. You can only do that when no one is around or if we're fighting." Kaoru stops and puts both feet on the ground.

"Check. Now what?" she says, walking by Kenshin's side.

"Well, I guess we should go shopping for you. Maybe I can call Megumi?

"Megumi?"

"Yeah. She's a friend of mine. She has a dog god as well so it might work out well since they're both all about how they look."

-

Kenshin and Kaoru stand by the mall entrance, waiting for Megumi and her partner. As people pass, they all look at Kaoru, confused as to why a woman was dressed in such traditional clothing. "Kenshin, I heard you finally got a dog god. Took you long enough. Now let me see him. Is he cute?" A tall girl with long, dark green hair and brown eyes comes running down the street in a short summer dress, a purple haired girl with and brown eyes following right after, dressed in shorts and a shirt.

"Megumi, Kamatari, this is Kaoru. Kaoru, this is Megumi and her partner Kamatari." They both stare at the girl next to Kenshin, Kamatari breaking the silence.

"Your partner is a girl?" Kamatari asks, inspecting her like a piece of meat.

"She looks more like a raccoon," Megumi says, laughing behind her hand. Kenshin looks towards Kaoru as he sees her form starting to shake.

"Why you…" She stops her shaking and instead, puts her index finger up to mouth and kisses it, then holding out to Megumi. "Poof," she says, Megumi giving her a weird look. Kenshin and Kamatari look at the girl while Kaoru tries to hold her laughter in.

"What was that for?"

"Uh Megumi, you better look at your head. There's two little things up there," Kamatari says, pointing to her head. Megumi lifts her hands to her head and starts feeling around, soon coming to two small triangles on her head.

"What do you…what are on my head?" she asks Kaoru, now holding her sides in laughter.

"If I'm a raccoon, you're a fox."

"Kenshin, don't you have your partner under control?" Megumi says, covering her new years with her hands. Kenshin bows his head again and sighs.

"It doesn't look like it." He turns towards Kaoru, who is still laughing. "Kaoru, please turn her back. She was only joking." Kaoru starts to calm and soon speaks.

"Fine. But next time she's getting a tail to match." Kaoru snaps her fingers and the fox ears disappear.

"I'm sorry Megumi. I really am," Kenshin says, giving a little bow as an apology.

"Don't worry about it. But it looks like you got a partner with some spunk. Maybe she'll help you grow a spine. So what's the favor you need?"

"Kaoru needs clothes and stuff and I thought it was probably better if a girl went with her to shop. So, do you have the time do maybe do some shopping with us? I'm paying of course," he says, showing the envelope.

"I guess. I mean, I do have to do some shopping of my own," Megumi says, looking at Kamatari.

"Oh, let me play dress up with her, please Megumi?" Kamatari begs, jumping up and down and clapping her hands like a little girl.

"Alright Kamatari. Kaoru is all yours," Megumi says, taking the envelope from Kenshin and looking inside.

"Should I be scared?" Kaoru asks Kenshin as Megumi tucks away the envelope, the two now staring at her.

"I don't think so."

-


	2. A Few New Arrangements

Just a few notes about the things in the future. There are different ways discussions are going to take place, so here is something to keep in mind:

"Text" is speaking

"_Text_" is thinking to oneself

'Text' is talking between tamer and partner

Alright. On with the story

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Ch. 2 - A Few New Arrangements

-

"Kenshin?" Kaoru shakes Kenshin slightly, trying to wake him up without being rude. She adjusts her long shirt, which she uses to sleep in before trying again. "Kenshin?" She tries again and is unsuccessful. Getting frustrated, she turns it up a notch. "Kenshin!"

"What in the … Kaoru?" he asks, popping outta his covers and seeing Kaoru floating off to the side, smiling at his reaction and wagging her tail in the air.

Kenshin, we need to talk about the sleeping arrangements."

"What's wrong with them?" he asks, getting out and starting to make his futon.

"I can't sleep in the closet. It's too small and stuff. I feel like I'm trapped," she explains, following Kenshin as he leaves his and enters the common area.

"I'm sorry Kaoru, but we can't afford any other place. Tokyo is an expensive city," he says, going to the fridge and looking for something.

"But didn't your uncle say you get some extra money every month? Plus, when we start getting missions, we'll get more."

"Missions don't usually pay that much and that stipend may not be enough." He finally decides on a bottle of water, and opens it, walking back to find a place to sit.

"There has to be something," Kaoru says, landing beside Kenshin.

"Maybe we can move you into the common room." A knock interrupts them from thinking anymore, followed by a voice.

"Kenshin, are you in there?" Kenshin gets up and walks a few steps before opening the door to reveal a woman with brown hair and apron, a big smile covering half her face.

"Miss Tae, how was your trip?"

"It was fine. Thank you for asking. I just wanted to remind you of the rent, but you always pay on time so I don't know why I'm here," she says, placing her hand to her cheek in a very ladylike manner.

"It's always nice to see you." Tae suddenly sees something move behind Kenshin, and takes a step to the side to see Kaoru further in the room, staring right back at her.

"And who's this behind you? Did you get yourself a girlfriend while I was gone?" Tae says, giving Kenshin a wink and causing Kenshin to blush.

"Actually, this is a friend of the family, Kaoru. She's staying the year in Tokyo to experience the city life. Kaoru, this is Miss Tae, my landlady." Kaoru stands up and walks over to the door, adjusting the shirt as she heads over.

"Hi Miss Tae. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"It's so nice to meet you too Kaoru. So tell me, where are you living?"

"Uh…here?" she answers, looking to Kenshin to make sure the answer was okay.

"You must be joking. There's no room in here for two people to sleep in."

"We'll figure something out," Kenshin says, hoping that she drops the subject soon.

"If you were interested, I have a two bedroom place upstairs that's open. It costs a little more than this one but at least you'll both have your own rooms and it would be cheaper than getting two singles." With that, Kaoru's eyes light up and she pushes her way in front of Kenshin to discuss the prospect more.

"Really? How much more?"

"I'm not exactly sure, but I'll leave you with the information later. I need to get around to other tenants. I'll keep it open if until the end of the week for you two. Have a nice day."

"Bye!" they both say, watching as the woman walks away. Once she rounds the corner, Kenshin closes the door, only to turn around and come face to face with Kaoru.

"So…"

"I'm sorry Kaoru. But the only possible way we could ever afford a bigger place would be to work extra hours at work or asking Uncle Hiko for more, which wouldn't happen."

"Awww." Kaoru sinks down to ground so that she's lying on her stomach, her tail now limped off to the side. Kenshin bends down and pets her on the head as if she was a dog.

"Don't worry. We'll figure something out. But for now, I need to do some things so why don't we get ready?" Before he heads to his room, another knock is heard at the door. Kaoru quickly sits up, tail disappearing as Kenshin opens the door once again.

"Yo Kenshin. How's it going?" the brown haired guy asks. This time, he wears white pants, a wife beater, and an unbuttoned white jacket, a black symbol drawn on the back. Next to him, a guy about his height with long black hair and black eyes, dressed simply in jeans and black t-shirt.

"Tired. But you will never guess what…"

"First, why don't you introduce us to your pretty friend here? Have you been hiding a girl from us?" the brown haired guy says, pushing Kenshin out of the way and letting himself in, his friend right behind him.

"Sorry guys. This is Kaoru, my dog god. Kaoru, this is Sano and his dog god Katsu," Kenshin says, introducing his brown haired and black haired friend.

"Your dog god? So you finally got one? Congrats man. And you sure got yourself a looker," Sano says, eyeing her up and down.

"Nice to meet you two," Kaoru says, trying not to rip their eyes out and pulling her shirt down a little more.

"Nice to meet you too Missy. I gotta say that if you weren't a dog god, I would be all over you," Sano says, giving her a wink. The one called Katsu walks up to her, his black tail shown. He gently takes her hand and kisses the back of it.

"It is a pleasure to meet you my lady."

"My lady?" Kaoru says, a confused look on her expression. 'Kenshin, why are these guys so weird?' Suddenly Kenshin starts looking around for the source of the voice as Katsu and Sano start talking to Kaoru.

'Who's there?' he asks himself.

'It's me. Kaoru. Didn't you know that partners have a psychic bond' she says, Kenshin finding some relief that he wasn't going crazy.

'Not until now. But just ignore them. They're always like this.'

"So what bring you two here so early?" Kenshin asks, saving Kaoru from the guys many stupid questions. "_Or maybe it's the other way around?_"

"We were wondering if you've had breakfast yet 'cause Katsu and I are starving," Sano says, patting his stomach and Katsu finding a nice seat right next to Kaoru. Kenshin just sighs and starts walking towards his room.

"Your parents left again and left nothing for breakfast, right?"

"You got it," Katsu says, trying to look up Kaoru's shirt, only to have his face slapped at as Kaoru drops down.

"Kenshin, isn't it kinda weird to have a female for a dog god?"

"So everyone's been telling me, but I can't help it. Kaoru did choose me so there must be a reason for it."

"Excuse me Kenshin, but what about breakfast?" Katsu brings up.

"At least let me get changed first, then we'll talk about breakfast," he says, before disappearing into his room. With no Kenshin in sight, attention gets turned back to Kaoru, who eyes the two suspiciously.

"So, Kaoru, how old are you? I mean, I've never heard of a dog god named Kaoru," Katsu says.

"Over a thousand years old. Why?"

"Because I like my females on the more mature side." Kaoru opens her mouth to snap back, only to close it and smirk, bring her finger up to her mouth, kissing it, and pointing at Katsu. Both Katsu and Sano look at it wondering what the dog god is up to.

"Poof." She puts the finger down and grins to herself. Katsu attempts to open his mouth to ask what that was about, only to find out that he can't open his mouth at all. He suddenly jumps up in a panic, feeling around at his mouth only to see that something like stitches are upon his lips. He turns towards Sano who only steps back in surprise.

"What in the world did you do to him?" he screams at Kaoru, trying to pry his partner's mouth open. Kaoru erupts into laughter, rolling on the ground and grabbing her stomach.

"Just making him shut up," she says in between laughs.

"Kaoru, undo whatever you did," Kenshin screams from his room. Kaoru stops her laughter and looks towards the door, pouting.

"But Kenshin…"

"Kaoru," he states before Kaoru can come up a reason for what she did.

"Ug, fine." She snaps her fingers before crossing arms and heading towards Kenshin's room as the door opens. The stitches holding his lips together open, letting Katsu move his mouth again.

"So Kenshin, what's the plan for today? Wanna go cause some mischief or pick up girls?" Sano suggests, leaning back on his lower arms.

"Kaoru and I need to do some errands then I have to go to work. Now, what do you want with your eggs?" he asks, looking into his fridge.

-

"Kenshin, I'm bored. Can't I go out and do something?" Kaoru asks, floating on her back in the kitchen of a bakery. Kenshin works hard, kneading a lump of dough, adding some flour and kneading some more.

"I don't feel comfortable letting you out yet. You still don't know everything around," Kenshin says, adding more flour.

"But what am I supposed to do for another 3 hours?" she whines, looking over his shoulder.

"You can take a nap or watch some television in the break room."

"I already tried that and it didn't work," she says, sneaking towards a mini unfrosted cupcake, only to be swatted by Kenshin.

"Hello? Is anyone back there?" a voice from the front counter says.

"Where's Mr. Ueda?" Kenshin asks out loud, looking around but not seeing his boss anywhere.

"I don't know," Kaoru says.

"Do you think you can take care of that Kaoru? I'm busy right now." Kaoru lands and looks out towards the counter then back at Kenshin.

"Yes Master." She bows and walks to the counter, seeing an older woman ready to order. "Hi. How can I help you?"

"I would like a dozen chocolate creampuffs to go," the woman says.

"Creampuffs? Let me see…" Kaoru looks around the place, trying to find the item of her want. "_Come on Kaoru. You've seen the humans do this all the time. Just look for the box then the dessert. Mmmm. Dessert. Wonder if Kenshin will buy some for me?"_ As she continues to wonder about what she wants, she finds a box and the shelves holding the creampuffs. Doing what she had seen humans do before while she was a roaming spirit, she picks out twelve and puts them in the box, sealing it and placing it on the counter. "Alright. One dozen creampuffs. Now, how much…" She now puts her attention to the machine in front, unsure of how to work it.

'Kenshin, how do I work the machine?'

'The register?'

'I guess.'

'Alright. Press in the amount the order costs. Then tell the customer how much it is and see how much they give you. Then press in the amount they give and press the cash button and give them back the amount the register tells you to.' Kaoru does as Kenshin says and she soon completes the action without problem.

"And here's your change. Thank you for coming by." She waves as she watches the lady leave with package in hand. Once she leaves, she turns towards Kenshin and flies in. "Hey Kenshin. I did it!" she says, giving Kenshin a hug.

"Good job," he says, starting to form the dough into shape.

"Are you talking to yourself again Kenshin?" The two turn towards the voice to see an old man under 5 feet wearing a apron talking to them.

"No Mr. Ueda. A customer came up and Kaoru took care of it."

"Kaoru?"

"Kaoru, this is my boss, Mr. Ueda. Mr. Ueda, this is Kaoru."

"Well what a pretty girl you are," he says, talking to a wall.

"Is he talking to the wall?" Kaoru whispers to Kenshin.

"He has some issues with his sight. Just step up to him, tap him on the shoulder and say hi." Kaoru walks over, taps him on the shoulder causing the man to turn around.

"Hi there. Nice to meet you." He looks up, squinting to look at her.

"You think you can squat down for me honey so I can get a better look at your face?"

"Sure." She squats down, only to see him staring straight at her but his hands square on her chest, giving a good feel.

"My, my what a pretty girl you are," he says, earning a confused look from both her and Kenshin.

"Uh, thank you?" she says, standing back and backing away.

"So you took care of a customer for me? That was very nice."

"It's no problem."

"You have a job?"

"No."

"Then why don't you work here? My daughter left to go back to school so I'm in need of some help. If it makes you fell better, you can work when Kenshin does and of course, you'll be paid."

"A job huh?" Kaoru says, thinking about it for a few seconds.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Kenshin says, stopping his work and turning towards the two.

"I'll take it," she says.

"Great. If you're free, I can train you now and next time I'll give you your uniform. Let me go get my things," Mr. Ueda says, walking out of the kitchen.

"Kaoru, I don't think that's a good idea," Kenshin says, resuming his work.

"Why not? It would keep me busy and close to you so you don't have to worry about me and its extra income for us," Kaoru says, trying to sneak another dessert.

"I don't know."

"Please. I mean, imagine what I would do if I wasn't working during these few hours that you can't keep track of me." Kenshin stops what he's doing and looks down into the dough, only to imagine Kaoru poofing everyone into different types of animals.

"Alright. You can keep it. But only when I work here," he says, returning to work.

"Yay. Thank you so much," she says, giving Kenshin another hug.

-

"So…" Kaoru asks, looking over Kenshin's shoulder as he goes through their financials, looking to see if there was anyway they could afford the new place. He sighs and puts down his pen, leaning backwards until he reaches the floor. Kaoru floats above, starring down and waiting for his answer.

"Even with your job we still wouldn't make enough, but we could maybe get new furniture. Like a nice fold-up tables so that when we go to bed, we can store it and there will be room for a futon for you."

"I see," disappointment in her voice as she places herself on the ground next to the guy. He sits up, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry Kaoru. I wish I could do something."

"It's alright I guess."

"Well, I'm gonna go take a bath now. Do you think you can clean up?" he asks, getting up and watching as Kaoru starts to making fire appear on the tip of her finger.

"Remember our deal?"

"Right. Sorry." She looks up and watches as Kenshin leaves, turning her attention to the left open book.

"There has to be something I can do. And I think I know what."

-

"Kaoru, what are you doing here? And where's my idiot nephew?" Hiko asks as the dog god appears in the temple's tea room which he liked to call it and since it was night, it was time for sake. As he continues drinking, she continues to float in front of him.

"He's taking a bath. I came to talk to you."

"Are you unhappy with him already? It's only been a few days."

"There's the fact that he made me sleep in a closet last night and that's why I'm here. I'm asking for an increase in our stipend."

"But your stipend is what we give all beginners."

"But most beginners have bigger places to live. Kenshin place is about the size of a…well, closet."

"The situation he lives in is teaching him discipline, which he needs."

"But now he has me and needs a bigger place. There's no way we can both live in his place. His landlady has a two bedroom place available for a bit more a month. With the stipend, Kenshin's job, and now my job…" she starts ranting, floating all over the room in her own world.

"You got a job?" That perked his interest.

"Yes. At the bakery Kenshin works at and during his same shift so we won't be separated. But with all those things, we're still kinda short." She stops her flying around and presents herself in front of him again, making sure she had his attention. "Now, I know you are a man of pride and honor so listen to this. If we don't get a bigger place, Kenshin and I are going to start fighting. IF we're fighting all the time because we don't have a little bit of space, as in a wall separating us, we won't be able to complete missions, which means we won't get any eventually, which means that we will become not needed and I will then have to revoke the vow that we made. Now, that doesn't only look bad for me and him, which is even worse than never having a dog god to begin with, but imagine the shame it will bring upon your family, this temple, and mostly you. You're his guardian and unable to train him. That will look poorly upon you and the last thing that you want is to have your honor tainted." Hiko looks at her, then into his cup, before taking another sip of his sake.

"We don't have the funds."

"Of course you do. I've been living around here long enough to know just how much goes in and out of this place. Plus, as soon as we start getting missions, you can take out a cut of our earnings since the earnings are just a bonus to us anyways."

"No one speaks that way to me. You are either very stupid or have a lot of guts."

"So do we have a deal Mr. Hiko?" she asks, watching him pour himself another drinking and taking it at once, contemplating the proposal.

-

"Kenshin! Guess what?" Kaoru screams as she launches herself towards the boy now in his pajamas and hands still full of supplies.

"What did you do? I wasn't gone that long and I've only had you for a few days," he says, moving his way in and placing his stuff down, Kaoru still attached to his neck.

"Why do you automatically think I did something wrong?" she says, before moving away and pretending to pout.

"Because of that little poof thing you can do." He waves his finger in the air and plops himself on to his futon, Kaoru landing to kneel in front of him.

"It wasn't anything wrong. But I solved our sleeping problem."

"And how did you do that?"

"I got the remaining money we need to get the two bedroom." Kenshin looks at her, eyes wide in shock and only thinking about what she did to do it. "_Maybe she robbed a bank. Oh I hope she didn't._"

"And how did you do that?"

"I talked your Uncle Hiko into giving us an increase." Silence envelops them as Kaoru waits patiently and looks as Kenshin's eyes opened so wide that Kaoru never thought it was humanly possible.

"You what? And he agreed?" Kenshin all but shouted at her.

"You just gotta know how to talk to the man," she says, giggling as she flies around the room. She stops after a few laps and lands back in front. "There's just one catch," she says, holding up a finger in front of Kenshin's face.

"Which would be?"

"He gets a cut out of mission payments."

"I see," he says, looking down at his feet. Kaoru waits again for an answer.

"So?"

"So, I'm glad I have a partner like you. We'll talk to Tae tomorrow about getting the place."

"Yay! This is so great," she says, once again around Kenshin's neck. This time, he hugs her back for a job well done.

"For doing such a good job, you can take my futon and I'll take the closet," he says, getting up from the futon.

"Thank you!"

-

In a berdroom, Kaoru is sleeping soundly on Kenshin's futon. Kenshin sleeps, or at least attempts to sleep in Kaoru's. He shifts around some, trying to clear some imaginary dust out of his face. "Wow. This is really uncomfortable."


	3. The First Day of Mayhem

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Ch. 3 – The First Day of Mayhem

-

The first day of school. A day that some people look forward to and others despise. As Kenshin walks down the street in his blue uniform and backpack slung over a shoulder, Kaoru follows as few paces behind, not letting on their current argument. "Please? It's so boring here. I promise to be good." Kenshin stops suddenly, causing Kaoru to bump into him. Startled slightly, she moves to stands in front of the tamer.

"Sorry Kaoru, but you can't go to school with me. You don't have any paperwork saying that you're human. Anyways, I talked with Sano and Megumi and they're going to bring

Katsu and Kamatari so you can hang out with them for the day," he says, continuing to walk. Kaoru follows right behind, slightly hunched over.

"But Katsu is scary and Kamatari is weird."

"Hey you two!" Megumi says, waving at the two as she and Sano wait in their school uniforms on the corner. Katsu and Kamatari are in the background, arguing over something.

"Hey guys. Ready for the first day of junior year?" Kenshin asks, Kaoru watching her two friends for the day continue to fight.

"How can you be so happy about school? I swear that the summers just keep getting shorter and shorter," Sano complains.

"We should get going before school starts," Megumi says, looking at her watch. She turns towards Katsu and Kamatari, who are still arguing. She sighs before talking to them. "Kamatari, Katsu, show Kaoru the ropes." The two stop arguing and look towards them.

"And stay out of trouble," Sano says, giving a wink to Katsu.

"Yes Master," the two say, bowing.

"Don't forget we have class today," Katsu tells Sano.

"Right."

"And we have that mission," Megumi mentions.

"I know." Kenshin turns towards Kaoru, who has joined the other two god dogs, meeting her eye to eye.

"Kaoru, no trouble," he says.

"No trouble," Kaoru says, waving him off as his friends start moving without him.

"I mean it," he says one last time before catching up with his friends.

-

"This is Megumi's place? It's so big," Kaoru comments, looking around the giant beige living room. Katsu and Kamatari sit on the sofa, flipping through the channels of large television.

"Yeah. I'm glad I chose a partner who can afford my expensive tastes in life," Kamatari comments. Kaoru floats over and sits herself on the back of the couch.

"As long as there's food, I'm fine," Katsu says, stuffing another spoonful of cereal in his mouth.

"So what so we do now?"

"Usually we just sit in front of the television and see what's on. Maybe play some video games and get something to eat," Katsu says. Kaoru slides down so she sits on the actual couch next to Katsu and watches the show in front of them.

-

As the two older dog gods watch some sort of daytime game show, Kaoru looks up at the clock hanging on the wall. "_Ten o'clock. It's only been two hours._" She pulls her eyes away, refocusing them on the screen. Fed up with the boredom, she starts tangling her hands in her hair in frustration. "Oh for crying out loud! It's only been two hour. This is so boring! Don't you do anything fun?" Kaoru says, shooting up from her seat and flying around the house in sheer boredom and stress.

"Like what? Oh. Let's play dress up," Kamatari says, watching the girl and clapping her hands together. Kaoru stops in midair and gives Kamatari a look as if she was saying what in the hell are you?

"No. Let's go out. Enjoy the fact that we have the opportunity to live in this world," Kaoru suggests, floating down to their level, tail wagging in excitement.

"And what do you have in mind?" Katsu asks, interested in what the newcomer has in mind.

"Let's first go to the park and see what happens."

-

The red haired tamer suddenly stops in the middle of his high school's hallway, looking around in search of something. "Is something wrong Kenshin?" Sano asks, stopping his travels as well.

"I just got this weird feeling. I think Kaoru is planning something."

"Come on. She said she wouldn't get into any trouble. Plus, Katsu and Kamatari are with her and they'll make sure that she doesn't do anything." Sano grabs the guy by the arm and drags him through the hallway towards their next class.

-

"Wow. This is really boring to. Where is everyone?" Kaoru says, high a top her perch in one of the trees in the park. Her two companions sit on either side of her looking down at all the humans.

"Either at school or work. The only ones out here are housewives with their kids and old people," Katsu comments, picking imaginary stuff out of his black tail.

"Are you sure no one is going to see us up here?" Kamatari asks, sinking a bit more into the tree so that the branches can cover her. Kaoru looks at her quickly only to shake her head, focusing back down on the park.

"You're such a wimp. Who looks up to a top of a tree this tall?"

"She's got a point Kamatari." All stay silent. Kaoru looks around more carefully, attempting to pick a target that would entertain them all. She suddenly sets her eyes on a pair of old ladies, sitting on the bench and feeding some of the birds.

"There is our first target," Kaoru says, pointing to the bench. The other dog gods following her line of sight.

"Two old women feeding some birds? What are you going to do? Scare all the birds away?" Kamatari asks.

"Just watch." Kaoru kisses her index finger and points it down. "Poof." They wait in anticipation for a few minute and see nothing except what was there before.

"I think you may have missed Kaoru," Kamatari comments.

"Just wait," Kaoru replies, her tail twitching behind her. Suddenly, two of the birds fly up and land on the back of the bench between the two old women.

"Hey there," a small little voice says. One of the women look around, before focusing on her friend.

"Did you say something Rose?" Her friend looks at her, stopping her feeding of the birds.

"No." They both resume their work, until the voice comes again.

"Right here ladies." This time, they both stop and look towards the two birds that are staring back at them, heads cocked to the side.

"We just wanted to thank you for the food, but do you think next time you can get something a bit more fresh. Stale bread is only good for so long." The birds bob their heads around for a few before flying off as the two old ladies scream and jump up from their seats, only to start kicking the birds to scare the rest of them off.

"That was great Kaoru. Who knows what mischief can be done with that one finger," Katsu says, grabbing her finger and inspecting it carefully.

-

During class, Kenshin stares out the window, book closed on his desk. "_Why can't I shake this feeling? _Only a few days and I think she's driving me crazy."

"Eh hem." Kenshin tears his gaze from the window, to his teacher who is standing only a few inches away, a very pissed off look on her face. "Mr. Himura, is there something you want to say?" she asks, keeping her place in her book with her finger as the rest of the class looks towards the two.

"No ma'am," Kenshin says, opening his book . The teacher looks at him once more before returning to the front of the classroom. Most of the students snicker, keeping their eyes on him. HE sinks a bit into his chair, only thinking about how much Kaoru was going to cause him even though she wasn't even around.

-

"This is great. At first I wasn't so sure about all of it, but I can't remember the last time I had so much fun," Kamatari laughs as she and the other two sit upon a roof top of one of the taller buildings in the shopping district. Katsu kneels next to Kaoru, and bows down so his forehead touches the roof.

"Kaoru, you are a dog god among the dog gods. I bow down to your greatness." Kamatari continues laughing, rolling on her sides as Kaoru hits Katsu in the head.

"I know. I know. So what should we do next?" she asks, looking around at the people below them.

"It has to be something good since this may be the last trick of the day."

"Why don't you make a ghost or something appear?" Katsu suggest.

"No good. People may get suspicious and something like that may get on the news," Kaoru says, flexing her finger to get it ready.

"I know. Why don't you make a piece of fruit or vegetable talk? I mean, those pigeons were pretty funny," Kamatari suggests.

"Alright. That woman looks like a good target. The one with the watermelon."

"Well then. Here it goes." Kaoru points her finger towards the unsuspecting woman and waits for the action to begin. The woman picks up a watermelon, cradling it in one arm, starts tapping on it. She turns it around, only to show a pair of eyes staring back at her.

"Mind not doing that? You're giving me a headache." Automatically, the woman slams the watermelon onto the ground, screaming in fright. Unfortunately, a man was walking his lab who was startled by the flying watermelon. This causes the dog to yelp in surprise and go running off, his owner trying to control him without success. The dog leads his masters into several produce carts, causing them to collapse and its contents to roll into the street and the cars to halt to a screeching halt. The sudden halting causes cars into run into each other and a line of traffic as far as the eye can see. The three dog gods watch with wide eyes from above, surprised at the result.

"This wasn't supposed to happen. What do we do?" Katsu says, starting to panic.

"We run. That's what," Kamatari says as the three dog gods disappear.

-

"See Kenshin, I told you nothing would happen today," Sano says as he, Kenshin, and Megumi walk down the street, back towards the corner where they met earlier that day.

"I guess you're right, but I keep having those feelings the whole day," he says, trying to think of why he would thought nothing went wrong.

"You're probably just paranoid. I mean, you've never exactly left Kaoru alone for such a long period of time right?" Megumi suggests.

"I guess." They continue there way past the stores, listening to other people talk and the news coming from the televisions in the store.

"On a more interesting note today, traffic in the shopping district has finally been cleared, though how it came about is rather odd." Kenshin suddenly stops and backtracks his way to the television with the story of interest.

"Odd?"

"IT seems that the accident was caused by an accident that happened by some stores. The produce fell into a road because several carts were knocked over by a dog dragging his owner after becoming scared when a woman smashed a watermelon onto the sidewalk. Why did she smash the watermelon? Because she thought she heard it talk."

"Kenshin, you don't look so good," Megumi and Sano go back towards their friend as they see a bit of a twitch appearing in his left eye, both hands in fists at his sides. He turns towards them, taking in a deep breath.

"Kaoru!" Sano and Megumi cover their ears at the shout and people around them stop to see what was happening. When nothing happens after a few seconds, they return to what they were doing. Sano and Megumi wait around and are soon joined by the three dog gods.

"Yes Master. Out of school already?" Kaoru says, bowing in respect.

"Kaoru, do you have any idea about this incident that happened in the shopping district today?" he says, pointing to the scene on the television. The three dog gods look towards the screen, then towards their tamers. His question is only answered by silence, until Katsu starts discussing.

"Well you see…"

"Katsu, you had something to do with this?" Sano asks.

"Kamatari?" Megumi asks, starting to get an idea of what exactly happened.

"How could you three do something like this? All we asked was not to get into any trouble," Kenshin starts, pacing in his place, the other two behind him, arms crossed.

"But Kenshin…" Kaoru starts, only to be stopped by Kenshin's finger pointed right at her.

"You be quiet. I know this was all your fault."

"It was part of the vow we made, you remember?"

"Within reason Kaoru. Normal people don't know you guys exist and if weird, supernatural things start happening, who knows what they'll start doing," Kenshin all but screams, rubbing his eyes in frustration.

"We're sorry Master," all three say, bowing to their partners.

"Come on. We gotta get to practice," Sano tells Katsu.

"And we need to go work on mission," Megumi says.

"Yes Master," Kamatari and Katsu say, standing straight again and walking away.

"We'll talk later Kenshin," Sano says. Kenshin watches them walk away, waving back.

"Bye guys." He turns back to his partner, who is still bowed over. He closes his eyes and sighs before walking past her. "We have some more talking about at home now." She gets up and realizing that he's past her, hurries up to him, stay a few paces in back.

-

"It's supposed to show up at sundown, right?" Kamatari asks Megumi, as they wait inside the giant plaza. Megumi waits on the ground, tossing up a few jacks in her hands.

"Looks like it will start setting at any time, so get ready." Kamatari flies up higher, near the roof, her purple tail swishing and ready to attack. After a few seconds, a black cloud appears a few feet away, taking the form

"So, they sent a dog to finish me off. How cute."

-

A tamer and his dog god sit quietly in their small living area, the dog god sitting in a corner watching her tamer attempting to do his homework. "Kenshin."

"I don't want to hear it Kaoru," he says, continuing his work.

"But…" she stops as Kenshin slams his pen down on the table, still not making any eye contact with her.

"I don't get what's with you. You're totally different than all the other dog gods I've heard about. Others usually don't make demands and know about the vow and I've never seen anyone with that thing you do with your finger." And with that statement, Kaoru dismissed her sullen state for a more aggressive one.

"Every dog god has something special about it and that just happens to be my special…" She stops herself this time, looking towards the window, her tail at attention as if ready to pounce. Kenshin notices the silence and sees her in a state he had never seen her in before and gets up from his seat.

"Kaoru, what's wrong?"

"Something's close by and it doesn't look good." The phone rings in the background, calling Kenshin to pick up his cell phone from the spot next to where he was sitting. Looking at the caller id, he sees Megumi is the one calling him.

"_But isn't she supposed to be on a mission?_" He opens the phone, only to have Megumi speak immediately.

"Kenshin, its me. I need your help big time."

"Where are you?"

"By the plaza. Quick," she says, before hanging up. Kenshin looks down at his phone, then up to Kaoru who seems to have heard the conversation as well.

"You heard her Kaoru. Let's see what you really can do."

-

Kaoru and Kenshin soon appear in the plaza nearby, only to be met with a giant black robe, holding a scythe with two blades and a beaten Kamatari trying to hold it off. "Whoa. That's why she meant quick," Kaoru mentions as Kenshin runs over towards Megumi who is off to the side, holding her left arm.

"Megumi, what happened?" Kenshin ask, checking to see if she's okay.

"Intelligence was missing info. Kamatari and I thought we could take him, but he did this weird thing with his eyes, where they glowed and then Kamatari couldn't use any of her powers. You're the closest tamer I could think of." They turn towards the scene when a loud crash is heard to see Kamatari knocked to the ground. The demon turns around, setting his sights on the other dog god.

"A new dog for me to play with. Won't mind if I do." The demon looks straight towards Kaoru, red eyes appear from in the hood. Kaoru stares right back at it.

"Kaoru, don't look at his eyes!" Kenshin screams, trying to warn his partner. Kaoru continues to stare at the demon as if she was in a staring contest with it.

"Why? He's just staring at me, which I should be flattered by but it is kinda weird."

"Cause they'll take away your powers," Megumi shouts, both humans looking towards the demon, trying to figure out what to do next.

"Take away my powers? Ha! I'd like to see him try. Does it look like my powers are gone?" she asks out loud, snapping her fingers so that a small flame appears on top of it. She crosses her arms, giving the enemy a smug look.

"Why isn't it working on you?" the demon asks.

"Because I'm not your ordinary dog god," Kaoru says, clenching her fists and tail up proud.

"Think you can defeat me? Think again because I have plenty of other talents," he says, charging towards the dog god, scythe up in the air. Kaoru calmly stays in her place, extending her right arm, index and middle fingers together.

"Just try me. Blue Inferno!" A burst of blue flames extend from her two fingers, aimed directly at the demon. As it nears its target, it expands over it, engulfing it completely in flames. As it does so, a loud piercing scream is heard and as it disappears, so does the demon. Kenshin, Megumi and Kamatari on the other side all look at the place where the demon once was.

"Wow. That was fast," Kamatari says in awe.

"Alright. Kaoru 1. Evil demons 0," Kaoru says, smiling and proud of herself. She quickly flies down by Kenshin and Megumi. "So how did I do? Not bad for the first time in a few hundred years?"

"That was amazing Kaoru. I can't believe you have so much power," Kenshin says, grabbing Kaoru by the shoulders and shaking her slightly in amazement. Kaoru chuckles at his actions, knowing she did a good job.

"Aren't you so lucky to have me?" Megumi watches the two converse as she walks over towards her partner.

"_How is it possible that Kenshin could get a dog god so powerful that she was able to defeat the monster in one attack while Kamatari and I had problems?_"

-

"Chocolate cake! Chocolate cake!" Kaoru says running into their place and placing herself by the small table they eat at, slamming her palms onto the top, grinning like a little kid.

"Just wait a second. I'm pretty sure I have some," Kenshin says, placing his hilt on a shelf on the wall and heading towards the fridge.

"I'm waiting," Kaoru shouts.

"Here you go. For a job well done," he says, walking over to her and placing the slice in front of her.

"Yay," she says, beginning to eat the cake with her hands. Kenshin sits down across from her.

"_I never thought Kaoru could possibly have this kind of power. I mean, she defeated that thing with one attack and wasn't affected by those eyes that we're Kamatari's downfall. _Why didn't Aoshi know who you were?"

"Huh?" Kaoru asks, who stops halfway through her cake.

"If you're such a powerful dog god, wouldn't have a dog god as powerful as Aoshi have at least heard of you?" Kenshin asks, looking for an answer. Kaoru looks at her cake for a few seconds, before starting to eat it again.

"Because I'm picky when it comes to my partner."

"Then why me?"

"Like I told your uncle, because you're cute. And because I knew you would be easy to manipulate."

"Manipulate?"

"Just kidding. Hey, can I get a glass of milk with this cake?" she asks.

"Sure." He gets up from the floor and heads back towards the kitchen. "_I must have done something special to deserve Kaoru._"

"Milk boy! Milk!" Kaoru shouts. Kenshin smiles and takes out some milk to give to his partner.

-

As the day begins, students talk to one another about what happened after school. Kenshin, Megumi, and Sano all talk about Kenshin's desk about what had happened yesterday until their teacher enters the room. As she does, the class starts to calm down and take their seats. "Class, today we have a new student joining us. I will let her introduce herself." Everyone becomes excited at the prospect of a new student and wait as the door to the room opens, a familiar black haired girl walking in, dressed in school uniform.

"Hi. My name is Kaoru Kamiya. My family is from Kyoto and I look forward to the rest of the year." The class responds with a hi Kaoru as Kaoru locks eyes with the familiar red head.

"Ms. Kamiya, why don't you take a seat next to Mr. Himura," the teacher says.

"Alright." She adjusts her bag once more before heading towards the window seat to the left of Kenshin.

"And while we're at it, why don't you show Miss Kamiya around the school today Mr. Himura."

"Of course Mrs. Kita." The teacher nods once and begins her get her stuff together, letting the class have a few more minutes.

"Hey there Kenshin. Happy to see me?" Kaoru asks, leaning towards him.

"What are you doing here? How did you convince the school to let you in?" he asks, confused and scared of what may have happened.

"I snuck into the school and saw what files I needed. Then I just made copies of them. I do have special powers after all."

"You shouldn't be here."

"Would you rather have me here where you can at least keep an eye on me, or would you rather I go hang out with Katsu and Kamatari for the day?" Kenshin thinks for a minute, only coming up with multiple scenarios of what could possible go wrong with her.

"Just behave. Alright?"

"You got it."

"Let's start class," the teacher announces, class bringing itself to attention.

"_What have I gotten myself into?"_


	4. The First Mission

Sorry for the long wait. But school has been insane. Anyways, here it is.

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Ch.4 – The First Mission

-

After the final bell rings, Kaoru, Kenshin, and Sanosuke stand outside in the school courtyard enjoying the freedom. "Hey Kaoru. What are you up to this weekend? I was hoping we could hang out with some of the guys," one guy says from a few feet away, surrounded by the other guys. Kaoru looks towards them and gives them a wave.

"Sorry, but Kenshin and I have some things to do this weekend. I'll see you on Monday."

"Amazing Missy. You've made friends with half the class already. You work fast, don't you?" Sano comments as the three start their way away from the school. Kaoru smirks and lifts her head proudly in the air.

"It's a gift."

"Come on. We better hurry if we don't want Uncle to scream at us," Kenshin says as the other two start falling behind.

"You finally getting yourself a real mission?" Sano says, striding up to Kenshin and patting him on the back, making him stumble a few steps forward.

"Hopefully," Kenshin says, trying to recoup from Sano's pat.

"Hopefully? Of course we are. There's no real reason why he would invite us over. And after how I wiped that demon, it's about time."

-

"Congrats, you officially have your first mission. Complete this and you will officially become the tamer for the Tokyo area for the Seijuro family. Making you and your two friends the official tamers for the Tokyo area, which I am having trouble comprehend," Hiko says, back in the familiar room and familiar arrangement.

"So what's the mission?" Kaoru asks eagerly, leaning forward to hear better.

"You'll be working at the Tokyo Spa. Seems like some type of demon is scaring off all the visitors and the owner wants it taken care of as quickly as possible. The demon seems to like to appear around late afternoon on the weekends, so you'll have time tonight to do some studying. You won't be so lucky like you were last time."

"Of course Uncle. Thank you for the opportunity," Kenshin says, bowing.

"Actually, I take offense to that last remark. Just because you're old doesn't mean you …" she stops as Kenshin slaps his hand across her mouth, stopping her in the act.

"Please ignore her. She's still trying to learn how to adjust to our world." Hiko looks between the two, as Kenshin moves his hand away.

"I see. You better get going if you're going to have any success," Hiko says, getting up from his spot on the floor.

"We won't let you down Uncle." Kenshin gets up, dragging Kaoru with him and bowing before making a hasty exit. Once outside, he spins towards the girl and stares her down. "You need to learn how to keep your mouth shut. He gives us our assignments so he can make it so that we never have an assignment, got it?" Kaoru looks at him for a second, before brushing pass him and heading towards the exit.

"Yeah. Whatever. He just better learn how to talk to people. And did you see Aoshi all smug and stuff."

"I know. I know. But right, now we have to concentrate on tomorrow," he says, catching up with his partner.

"Hey Kenshin, what did he mean by the official tamers?"

"You don't know much for a dog god."

"It's been a while. Refresh me," she says, waving her hand in the air.

"Every country has tamers and dog gods and each country is split up into subdivisions. Japan has three of them- the Northern part is taken care of by the Takanis, the Southern by Sagaras, and the Central is by the Seijuros. People will report a demon problem to one of the houses and then the house will contact one of their tamers to take care of the job, depending on the level of the demon and location.

"In each subdivision, there are further subdivisions or areas. For each area, there are 3 tamers that take care of any disturbances that may happen. These three take care of the everyday and medium level demons. They are called first-class tamers. Second class tamers take medium and some higher demons. Third-class, like Uncle Hiko and Aoshi, take care of the big demons. That's what we're aiming for in the end."

-

After leaving the shrine, Kenshin and Kaoru head into town, stopping at a small dojo. The two walk in and are greeted by a friendly looking old man at the front desk. "Ah Kenshin, what brings you here today?"

"If it wasn't too much trouble, I was hoping that I could crash a class and do some sparring?"

"Of course not. And will your girlfriend be watching?" he asks, looking at an unhappy Kaoru behind him.

"She's not my girlfriend, but she does want to watch, if that's ok?"

"Of course. Class starts in 10." Kenshin turns around towards Kaoru.

"Kenshin, I don't want to sit around and watch." She whines, crossing her arms and looking away.

"The class is only an hour. Then we'll get something to eat and rest up for tomorrow. I'm gonna change and warm-up, so you just wait right here." Kaoru sits in a huff as Kenshin heads towards the locker rooms.

"Why are you doing this to me Kenshin?" she leans her head back, looking at the outside world upside down. She watches for a few before a familiar face appears then disappears. She lifts her head up and looks towards the door to see Sano and Katsu enter.

"Hey Missy, what are you doing here?" Sano asks, stuffing his mouth with a donut from the bag in his hand.

"Waiting for Kenshin like a good little dog."

"He's in class?"

"Yeah. Wants to spar to get ready for the mission tomorrow."

"Your first mission? Congrats. That means you two will become a real team then," Katsu says.

"But now I have to wait around for him to finish." She looks out onto the floor, seeing Kenshin starting to warm up.

"How about you come with us. We need to head to some shops to pick things up and I'm sure Kenshin won't mind if you're with us," Katsu says, following Kaoru's eye.

"Why not. Yo Kenshin!" She screams, waving frantically in the air as Kenshin looks towards her. "I'm going to go hang out with Sano and Katsu for a while. I'll be back in an hour." She waves once more and then leaves taking an arm of each boy and dragging them out with her.

"Kaoru, wait!" HE tries to yell, only to see her gone. HE smacks his hand to his forehead, giving out a loud sigh. "Well, I guess she'll be okay with them."

"Himura, better start warming up."

-

"Thanks for the snacks guys. They were tasty," Kaoru says, licking her fingers of any last sugary residue.

"I gotta say, I think you may have the ability to out eat both me and Sano, though you're only half our size," Katsu says from her right, patting her on the head. Kaoru swats his hand away and walks quicker.

"I may be a bit on the smaller side, but I can beat you guys in anything. I mean, just today I totally creamed him on the track." She looks back at the guy and sticks her tongue out.

"That's because you're a dog god. If you were a normal human, there's no way you would've beaten me." Hearing those words, Kaoru turns back around and starts to slow down, realizing what he said was indeed true.

"_That's right. I'm not a human. No matter how hard I pretend to be, I never will be one._" She looks down at her hand first, then brings it back to the necklace around her neck, reminding her of what she really is.

"Hey Kaoru, you okay?" Sano asks, putting his arm around her.

"Yeah. I was just thinking about what was for dinner," she smiles, patting her stomach with both hands. The group soon turns the corner to see Kenshin waiting outside and looking straight at them.

"It looks like we made it just in time. How was your practice Kenshin? Missy told us about your assignment tomorrow."

"It was a good workout. I think once I get home, I'll look over some books then go to bed early. I want this mission to go perfect so maybe Uncle Hiko will get off my back."

"He's never gonna get off your back man, you should just give up trying." Kaoru hops over to her tamer and wraps her arms around his neck, hanging off of him slightly and a huge grin covering her face.

"Everything will go just fine. I mean, you have me. What more can you ask for?"

"Oh great Kaoru, I bow to your greatness," Katsu says, getting onto his knees and bowing. Kaoru looks down from her position to see his eyes subtly looking up her skirt.

"Hey, eyes down boy," she says, raising her foot and slamming his head into the ground. Katsu attempts to speak, but all that comes out is muffled as Kaoru keeps her foot pressed hard.

"Well, we better let you two go then. Good luck tomorrow," Sano says, waving off but not before grabbing Katsu by the shirt and lifting him off the ground.

"Thanks," Kenshin says, waving back. He looks back towards Kaoru who now sports an adorable little grin.

"Kenshin, what's for dinner?"

-

For the past hour or so, the two partners sit in their living room, old books with pictures of demons scattered about open. Kaoru takes another unopened one and flips through the pages as she lies on her side, her tail swishing about. "And what am I supposed to be doing again?"

"Just looking through the books and reading about different demons," Kenshin says, looking carefully at another book by the table.

"But this is so boring." She slams the book shut and flips onto her back, hands behind the head.

"When in a battle, you need to know your enemy so that you can find its weak spot and destroy it quickly."

"And reading is going to help how?"

"We can learn about some of the common ones so that when whatever appears, we can come up with a game plan quickly. Hmmm, I probably should've done more training with you. We'll start that on Monday."

"Reading about them don't really help much when you've already encountered a whole bunch of them. Like in hundreds of years worth of battles Kenshin!" she shouts, but leaves the boy untouched. She turns towards the window, looking out at the skyline. While staring, she sees a strange blue light fly by. Though quick, she has an idea of what exactly was there.

"_Why is he here?_" she asks herself, getting up from her position and opening the window. Kenshin feels the breeze and turns to see his partner with one foot on the ledge.

"What is it Kaoru?" he asks, getting ready in case of attack.

"Nothing. I just need to go check something out. I'll be back soon." She jumps out gracefully and flies in the direction of the light.

-

Kaoru soon finds herself on one of the larger skyscrapers downtown. She looks around until she sees who she was supposed to meet. "I'm glad you could make it."

"What do you want Aoshi?" He pushes himself off from the wall he was leaning on to approach the girl.

"I just wanted to tell you that I'll be watching you and Kenshin tomorrow."

"And you came out here to tell me that because?"

"Just wanted to tell you so that you won't be concerned if you feel another presence in the area."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, it is." Aoshi jumps into the air a few feet, before looking at Kaoru one more time. "Good luck tomorrow." She watches as he flies off and disappears, following with a humph.

"I don't need luck."

-

"_So this is it. My first real mission. Concentrate on your surroundings Kenshin. You never know when it might show up,_" Kenshin repeats in his head over and over again. He stands at attention, a mop in hand as he pretends to be cleaning the spring's area.

"Kenshin, I'm bored," Kaoru says, floating in the water in the bathing suit. "When is this demon going to show up? My trigger finger is getting impatient." She lifts up in finger to emphasize as a little flame keeps flickering on and off.

"Be patient Kaoru, It'll show up eventually." Kenshin suddenly drops his mop as a strange feeling comes over him. Kaoru feels the same thing and lifts herself from the water, ready to attack. "Looks like you won't have to wait that long after all." They both look towards a different pool of water and watch as a huge column of water erupts from it. Spraying water everywhere, a large water demon that resembles a gingerbread man, black dots for eyes appears, starring right at them.

"So you're the demon that's been haunting these grounds," Kenshin says, bring out a hilt which quickly turns into a blade of light.

"These are my lands. I refuse to let some humans disgrace it with their filth."

"I gotta say that its not really all that great," Kaoru comments, angering the demon more.

"Why you insolent fool," he says, bringing an arm back, then whipping it forward towards Kaoru. She sees it though and quickly dodges it.

"Kaoru, watch it," Kenshin says from below, warning her as another spray of water collides with her, sending her to the ground. She quickly gets herself together, standing up and shaking all excess water off of her.

"Damn that's cold considering you overlook a hot spring. Blue inferno," Kaoru sends her attack, which the demon dodges, only to be hit with another. Turning around, he sees that the source of that attack was from Kenshin's sword.

"So your human wants to get involved as well, how about these?" The ground starts to vibrate as odd looking frog like creatures start to emerge from the ground and making their way towards Kenshin.

"What are those?" he asks out loud, his sword out in front. Kaoru looks at them quickly then back to the main demon.

"They're minions," she answers.

"You take care of the big guy. I'll handle these little ones?" Kenshin suggest.

"That's fine by me." Kenshin slashes his sword, letting an arch of white light escape as one of the frogs jump to attack. As he continues to fight them, Kaoru attacks on her own, trying to take down the water demon with her fiery attack.

"Why won't you just die already?" she screams in frustration, dodging another attack.

"Try something else," Kenshin suggests, striking down a few more creatures.

"No, really?" She brings her two hands together, only to pull them apart, blue lines crackling between them. "Lightening Strike." She aims the power towards the demon and it hits, sending volts through the creature's body and sending it to the ground with a large thunk.

"They stopped," Kenshin states as the annoying little creatures disappear. He then looks up at his partner, who is still ready to fight. "You can shoot lightening?"

"Yeah."

"Why didn't you do that before?" he asks, annoyed at her indifference.

"Because it takes a while for me to build enough energy!" she screams down at him as the demon in the background starts to collect himself.

"That's it. It's made of water, so electricity should do major damage. Can you do it again?"

"I told you it takes a while for me to build up enough energy!"

"What else can we use?" Kenshin looks around, looking for another source and soon finds himself staring straight at some heating lamps. "The lights." '_Kaoru, I need you to get the demon into the water as close to the tanning lights as possible_.'

'_Righty oh._' She returns to attention and sees the demon has gotten back to his feet. "Come on water boy. Give me your best shot." While she continues her fight, Kenshin runs towards his target and with an arc, shatters the glass of the lamp, exposing its wiring and such. He then looks above to see Kaoru as she leads the demon closer to the pool of water closest to the lamp. As soon as it takes its last step, Kenshin pushes the lamp into the pool. But at the same time, the demon attacks Kaoru, sending a rope made of water that wraps around her leg and pulls her closer. As the lamp finally hits the surface, volts are sent through the demon as well as Kaoru. Kenshin uses his arm to shield his eyes from the bright light and steps away. After a few seconds, opens them to watch as the demon spirit disappear, only to be left by a glass bead which shatters.

"Well, that wasn't so bad for a first mission, right Kaoru?" He waits but hears no reply. "Kaoru?" He looks around and soon finds his partner, face down on the ground, tail in the air twitching along with her leg.

-

In a very familiar room, a young tamer and partner sit in front of his Uncle and his partner. Kenshin kneels in his spot, clenching and unclenching his pants, eyes to the floor. His partner kneels to his right, her black tail twitching slightly every few seconds.

"You electrocuted your partner?" Hiko states calmly.

"It was an accident," Kenshin whispers. He looks up to see his uncle looking straight at him, slamming down his tea cup on the floor.

"You electrocuted your partner. You are supposed to work with her, not kill her. How big of an idiot are you? And on your first mission? I will never live this down if this gets out."

"It was my fault sir. I wasn't watching what was happening completely. I mean, except for the first shock, nothing happened," Kaoru says, trying to laugh it off, only to follow her explanation with her left eye twitching. The two watch as the older man starts to regain his composure, taking in a deep breath.

"At least you were able to defeat the demon with minimal damage to the area. Here's your cut of the commission. I took out a chunk that covers the extra expenses that you have incurred." He slides an envelope over towards them, which Kenshin quickly takes and stashes. "Now get out of my sight." The two stand up and bow quickly.

"Yes Uncle Hiko."

-

"So how did we do?" Kaoru asks Aoshi, as the two stand atop the building they had met on the day before.

"It wasn't the worst first assignment."

"I'm not used to working with others."

"Well, you're going to have to." Kaoru looks down for a second, hand wrapping around her necklace.

"Kenshin mentioned something about training together."

"I would advise it. If you don't start working together better, Hiko will keep giving you the low end assignments. And I know that isn't what you're used to." Kaoru looks at him this time, straight in the eye trying to figure out the older looking male.

"Why are you doing this Aoshi?"

"What do you mean?"

"This meeting with you to discuss Kenshin and I's progress. I'm sure that it's not a normal thing among partners."

"The arrangement interests me. I haven't seen anything like it in quite a while. Good night," he quickly ends, before leaving. Kaoru takes leave as well, but not without questions.

"_What is he up to?_"


	5. Just a Normal Saturday

It's been so long I know. I'm glad that people have still been reviewing. I had to go through finding a job, graduating, moving, and working. But now I should have some time if I'm not too tired from working.

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Ch.5 – Just a Normal Saturday

Three guys stand off in the side of field watching some of their fellow school mates play soccer during gym period, one with short white hair and light blue eyes standing in between two bleached-blond haired, brown eyed guys. One of them points his finger towards a girl, playing with the guys - something not normally seen as the girl scores a goal, earning cheers from the rest of her team. "That's the girl I was telling you about Enishi. She's good right?"

"You said she was new?" the white haired man named Enishi asks.

"Just moved a few months ago. In fact, during the first week of classes in gym, she was too strong for the other girls so the teach decided to put her in with the guys."

"She's been beating quite a few of guys too. It's impressive." The guys continue watching as she kicks the ball to one of her teammates, only to be knocked into by a rather large student, sending her to the ground. She quickly gets up and brushes herself off.

"What the hell was that for?" she says, walking up to the guy and looking him in the face. At this point, the game stops and everyone looks at the two staring each other down the on the field, the girl obviously having to crane her neck up to meet the boy's stare.

"If you can't play with the big boys, you shouldn't."

"Well if you can't play with a girl who's better than you, maybe you shouldn't play at all," she says, poking him the chest for emphasis, pushing him a step back. Suddenly, he brings up his fist and punches Kaoru in the cheek hard enough to knock her down. She quickly recovers, still seated on the ground and brings her hand up to her cheekbone as the gym teacher gets between them.

"Shin. In my office now. Kamiya, you okay?" the teacher says.

"I think so," she says, getting up from the ground with some of the other guys help.

"Get yourself to the nurse's office now then to my office. Can you make it on your own?"

"It was only one hit. I'll be fine."

-

"Yo Kenshin. How did your quiz go?" Sano asks as he approaches his red headed friend waiting by one of the trees, looking out into the courtyard.

"Alright I guess. Where's Kaoru?" he asks, looking for the girl who is usually behind Sano at this point in the day. Sano leans against the tree before taking a deep breath to answer his question.

"She got into a fight."

"What?" Turning towards his friend, he waits for the explanation. '_I hope that she didn't start anything that will make people suspicious._'

"She didn't start it though. Shin did. She got punched in the face real good and the teach told her to go to the nurse then meet her in her office, but she should be out soon. But what's more important is what were you staring at before?"

"Me? Nothing," he says, calming down a bit and blushing. Sano looks out and sees a group of girls, one with black hair and the others laughing.

"I see. Tomoe again. When are you gonna grow a pair man and just ask her out?"

"I don't know what you're talking about Sano." He takes Kenshin by the shoulders and tries to shake some sense into the shorter guy.

"Of course you do. Listen to me, if Kaoru can take on demons 100 times her size, you can ask her out."

"I don't know." Sano lets him go and turns towards the group, cupping his hands around his mouth.

"Hey Tomoe," he shouts before running behind the tree to hide, leaving an embarrassed Kenshin in front.

"Sano."

"She's looking straight at you. I think you should go walk over," he whispers behind the tree before giving him a slight nudge as the girl heads on over.

"Hey Kenshin. Did you call me?" Tomoe asks a few feet away.

"Hi. Uh yeah. How's school so far?"

"It's fine. And you?"

"Yeah. Fine."

"The guy is totally helpless," Sano whispers to himself, his head hanging in shame. Suddenly, a female voice appears a few inches from his face.

"So what's going on?" He turns to see Kaoru hiding along side of him, watching the conversation.

"Yo Kaoru. Kenshin's trying to ask out Tomoe. He's had a crush on her since middle school."

"That long huh? Maybe we should give him a hand?"

"And how do you suppose we do that?" She giggles a bit before lifting up her right index finger, a large grin spreading across her face.

"With a little magic of course." Kissing the finger, she points it towards her target. "Poof."

"Well, it was nice talking to you Kenshin. But I need to head home."

"Oh. Alright." He says, watching the girl turn back towards her friends. Suddenly, a strange feeling goes through his body and his mouth starts moving. "Tomoe. Wait."

"Yes Kenshin?"

"If you're not busy tomorrow or anything, I think you should spend it with me. We'll hang out, eat out, maybe catch a movie and have a great time. That is, if you're interested," he syas, turning into a much more confident guy than a few seconds ago.

"I would like that. How about 11 am in the plaza?" she asks.

"Sounds good. See you there. Bye."

"Bye." She waves off before walking back towards her friends. Kenshin suddenly feels another tingle, shaking his head and trying to replay the past few minutes.

"Did I just do that?" He turns back towards the tree and sees Sano and now Kaoru waiting for him. "Kaoru, are you okay?"

"Of course I'm okay. Did you really think some stupid jock could hurt me?" she says, standing tall.

"I sometimes forget who you really are," he says as Sano heads over and slings an arm around Kenshin's shoulders.

"So, it looks like you were asking Tomoe out. Am I right?"

"Uhhh…" he blushes, his feet looking all the more interesting.

"My god you're hopeless man. You should just be glad you have a dog god who's watching out for your well being." Realization hits him as he looks straight at Kaoru, sporting an obviously guilty face.

"You made me say those things, didn't you?" She sticks out her tongue as Sano rubs his head with his fist.

"What do you think?" she says, as the two boys stop and look behind her.

"Kamiya." She turns around, coming into view of three guys watching her during gym class.

"How's your eye?" The white haired boy asks.

"It's fine. Do I know you?" She takes a few steps back, not only in suspicion but to get a better look.

"Hey Kamiya." The boy to his right says waving,

"Matt. What's going on?"

"Sorry for the weirdness, but this is Koji and this is Enishi."

"We were watching you play today. You're really good," Koji says.

"Um…thanks." Enishi takes a few steps forward.

"We were wondering if you were free tomorrow. There's a big soccer tournament at the university and we're in need of another player. We're hoping that you'll join us since with your talent, we may have a good chance of winning."

"So are you in? Please Kamiya. We've lost for the past four years and we really want to win," Matt pleads, suddenly appearing in front of Kaoru. As she opens her mouth to give an answer, Kenshin speaks up from behind.

"Sorry, but she can't." Kaoru and the three guys suddenly give attention to the guy standing in the background.

"And why can't I? I mean, I have nothing to do and you'll be out for the whole day. You don't really want to leave me all alone again, do you?" she asks.

"I was going to let you hang out with Sano and Katsu."

"Do you really want me to hang out with those two trouble makers?"

"Megumi and Kamatari?"

"You know they like to go shopping and I can easily get separated from them in a large crowd."

"I can drop you off at the shrine."

"And what are you going to tell your uncle and what is he gonna stay? 'You're leaving her with me while you go out on a date?'" Kenshin stops and thinks about the next possibility.

"Well, I guess it would keep you entertained."

"So is that a yes?" she asks. Kenshin hangs his head again in defeat and nods his head. With his approval, she turns back towards the guys. "What do I have to do?"

"Be at Tokyo University at 9am sharp. We start at 10am," Koji says.

"Do you have soccer gear?" Enishi asks.

"Soccer gear?"

"I'll take that as a no then. I think my brother may have something that would fit you, so don't worry about it. We'll see you tomorrow then."

"Right," she says, waving as the three head on out.

"Thanks Kamiya!" Matt shouts again. Kaoru stands in deep thought until Megumi makes her way over.

"Kaoru, why were you talking to Enishi?"

"He and some of the guys invitied me to play with them in some soccer tornament tomorrow. Why?" she asks, as the group starts to make their way out.

"Oh I don't know. Maybe it's because he's like the hottest guy in the whole school and every girl wants him."

"Oh." Megumi stops, surprised at her friends nonchalant attitude.

"That's all you can say?" she screams from a few feet behind, causing the rest of the group to stop and look towards her.

"That's enough of this. We gotta get our buddy here ready for tomorrow's date," Sano says. Megumi quickly forgets about her conversation with Kaoru and looks at Sano.

"A date?"

-

8:30 am read the small alarm clock next to Kenshin's bed. He turns over, looking at it, then sitting up in bed deciding that it was a good time to get up. Swinging his legs over the edge, standing and stretching he listens for any noise in the other room. "I wonder if Kaoru is up?" he wonders out loud, opening his door and taking a quick look around. No one in the living room or in the kitchen. "Doesn't look like it." With that, he walks on out and heads towards Kaoru's room. He knocks on the door and waits for a response. After hearing nothing, he slowly opens the door, spotting a still slumbering Kaoru. Walking in, he heads over and gives her a few hard nudges with his foot. "Hey Kaoru. Wake up. You need to be at the field in like 30 minutes."

"Screw training. I don't feel like it," she mumbles, swatting his hand away and turning so that her back was to him.

"Not for training. For that soccer game." He waits for a few seconds before seeing Kaoru almost magically pop out of bed, scurrying around the small room.

"The soccer game! Oh man. I'm gonna be late." She stops and looks at Kenshin, still in her room. "What are you waiting for? Get out so I can change," she commands, pushing him out into the living room and shutting the door. Kenshin looks at the door once before ruffling his hair with his right hand and heading to the kitchen.

"Why couldn't I get a dog god like Aoshi?"

-

"Where is she? Do you think she got lost? Any one have her cell phone number?" Matt asks as he looks around for Kaoru as the other teams start to gather around the field.

"Calm down. It's nine now," another kid says, looking at his watch. A few seconds later, Kaoru arrives, running up to the group of guys.

"Hey guys. Sorry if I'm late," she says, joining the group and observing the other teams scattered.

"Right on time. So before we get warmed up and everything Kamiya, what position do you play?" Enishi asks. She looks at him, slightly confused.

"Position?"

"You know, defender, attacker, midfield?" Matt comments.

"I just kick the ball."

"Well, Joe was an attacker. It shouldn't be a probelm for you to fill. You're fast and you have a good leg. That's the gear I was talking about. You think you can put it on?" Enishi asks, throwing the duffel bag to Kaoru and letting her open it. Inside, a pair of shin gaurds, cleats, and socks.

"I'm sure I can figure it out."

-

'_Alright Kenshin. You can do this. It's just a date. Go walking around. Then maybe a movie. Get something to eat and then maybe to the park. It can't be that hard. Then how come I'm more nervous now then I am when I fight a demon?' _Kenshin says to himself, as he waits patiently for his date to arrive.

"Kenshin?" a girl's voice says from behind. Turning around, he sees Tomoe a few feet in front of him, waiting for his response. He takes a few steps forward and starts talking.

"Tomoe. Hi."

"Hey. How are you?"

"Good. You?" he asks, beginning to walk and Tomoe following next to him soon after.

"Good. So, where are we going?"

"I was thinking maybe getting something to eat and then a movie."

"That sounds nice."

"Alright. So, where do you want to eat?"

"There's this nice café a few blocks away. We can go there."

"Sounds good." He says as the two fall into silence. _'This has to be the worst beginning ever_.'

-

"What took you two so long?" Sano asks as he and Katsu watching Megumi and Kamatari take a seat next to them on the bleachers, getting ready to enjoy the games.

"Kamatari here had to decide on the perfect outfit for sitting and watching other people."

"It's not my fault if I like to look nice."

"Well then, do you see Kaoru anywhere? She can't be too hard to spot since she is most likely the only girl playing," Sano asks.

"Ooh. There she is. Kaoru, up here!" Katsu shouts, standing up and waving his arm in the air.

"Be quiet Katsu. She probably can't hear you from all the way up here. Plus, she needs to concentrate on getting ready," Kamatari says, pulling him back down into his seat.

"Concentrate? She can beat all the guys down their by herself. She doesn't have to concentrate on anything except being too good."

-

"How do you and Kaoru know each other? You two seem to go everywhere together," Tomoe asks as the two teens finish up eating their meal. Kenshin looks at his plate for a few seconds, trying to come up with a story.

"She's a family friend and when she wanted to come to Tokyo, my uncle thought it would be nice if she stayed with me so she would have someone around and not be by herself. Her family is very protective of her and doesn't want anything to happen to her."

"Considering the fact that she plays better then most of the guys in the school, it doesn't seem like she would have trouble."

"Well school Kaoru is a lot different than outside Kaoru," he tells her while thinking to himself _'How true that is_.' Pushing his plate aside, he changes the topic. "So, you ready to go see that movie?"

-

"Goal white team!" the announcer screams as Kaoru scores a goal, causing the team to run together to congradulate the girl. "And with that goal made by the only female in this competition, the score is 4 -1 white to red with only 30 seconds left. And it looks like the red team is letting it go. Who says that girls can't play with the big guys?"

"Good job Kamiya. I knew having you on the team would be great," Matt says, rubbing her head as the rest of the teammates walk with her towards their seats to rest up after winning their second game.

"Kaoru is really kicking their butts down there," Megumi comments up on the bleachers next to Kamatari, Sano, and Katsu.

"What do you expect? She's not exactly a normal girl," Kamatari comments.

-

"Um, sorry about spilling that drink on your pants," Kenshin shyly says, rubbing his neck as Tomoe swipes her hand across her right thigh as the two exit the theater. 

"No worries. They're dark so you can 't see it that bad. IS there anything else planned?"

"I'm not sure. I'm kinda making this up as I go along." Tomoe looks at her watch, an idea hitting her.

"We can go to the university and see if the guys from our school are still in the tournament. Kaoru's in it too, right?"

"Yeah. With her in it, they've probably already made it to the finals, if not won it," he comments, the two heading towards the tournament.

"You think so? There are a lot of good players from other schools. Can Kaoru really be that good?" Tomoe asks, curious as to why the girl was so different.

"There's a lot more to her than meets the eye."

-

"I can't believe we have to go against them. They beat us every year," some guy on the team comments, looking at the team across the field.

"But we're better this year then we have been in the past," someone else says.

"Looks like Keita is still center attack. He's good. Really good."

"Kamiya, you're wearing something under your shirt, right?" Matt asks Kaoru who is lying down on the grass

"Yeah, why?" she asks, sitting up and looking at the guy.

"Good. Then take it off," he says, motioning her to stand up.

"Excuse me?!"

"Keita gets stupid around hot girls. You are a hot girl. So you play center without your shirt and show him your chest and backside if possible. It should distract him enough for you to get the ball at kickoff."

"It is a good plan," another team member comments, the rest of the team now joining in on the conversation.

"Don't you think that Kamiya might think it a little degrading?" Enishi comments.

"Well, I do want to win and its not like I'm completely topless. I guess I gotta use what I've been given for something."

-

"What's missy doing?" Sano comments from the bleachers as he and the others watch Kaoru as she takes off her shirt.

"It looks like she's taking off her shirt," Katsu says. "Damn she has a nice chest."

"Katsu!" Megumi and Kamatari shout, Kamatari whacking him one on the head.

"Hey guys. Mind if we join you?" a familiar voice says. All four look up to see Kenshin and Tomoe.

"Kenshin. Tomoe. Hey," Megumi says.

"We thought it would be nice to drop by and see how the guys from our school are doing," Tomoe says, taking a seat with Kenshin in the row of bleachers above the group.

"Then you've come just in time. They reached the finals and it's gonna start soon," Kamatari says.

"You should've seen Kaoru today. She was amazing and she's the only girl participating," Sano comments.

"Where is she?" Kenshin asks, looking on the field for a familiar head.

"She's the only person down there with no shirt and a bra," Katsu comments, pointing her out.

"What?"

-

"And here we are ladies and gentlemen. The final round of our soccer tournament. It's the blue team versus the white team and it looks like the white team is switching up the players."

"Hey," Kaoru says, making her way to the center as the other guy known as Keita waits as well.

"Hey," he says, looking at Kaoru and then giving her a once over before landing his sight on her chest.

"So you ready to play?" she asks, leaning forward as to touch her toes. Keita looks at her, smirking.

"I'm always ready to play."

"Hey Kamiya. Don't forget one last stretch," Matt says from behind. Kaoru turns around and waves.

"Thanks for the reminder." With that, she does a quick stretch, bending over and touching her toes, letting her shorts ride up a bit and getting the attention of a certain member. She then turns back around, getting ready, pleased at a slightly dazed guy.

"It looks like the ref is ready to blow the whistle for kickoff." With that, the whistle goes off and with the enemy dazed, Kaoru takes control of the ball. "And the ball goes to the white team, leaving the blue team's kicker stunned."

-

"The score is 3 to 2 white team with less than 2 minutes left on the clock. And it looks like the white team is heading straight towards the goal. If they can make this shot, they will have pretty much captured first place in the tournament and with their female teammate in possession, it might just happen," the announcer says as Kaoru guides the ball towards the goal, trying to find an open spot. Unknown to her, one of the other players comes running towards her and gets into a position where he it seems he is going to swipe the ball from Kaoru, he instead raises his foot higher, slamming his cleat into Kaoru's right knee. The act making Kaoru trip over herself, twisting her knee and loosing control of the ball. Gasps and hollers are heard from the crowds as the refs stop the game and check on the girl.

"Kamiya, are you alright?" Enishi asks as he, a ref, and a medic crouch next her as she straightens her leg out, inspecting the torn and slightly bloodied knee.

"I think so. Just a cut. Do I get a penalty shot?"

"What was that? Looks like blue team defender tried to take down the white team's star player. That is going to be a penalty on the blue team. Hope that injury only looks bad."

-

"Oh no. You think she's okay?" Tomoe asks as the group stands up to get a better look as other onlookers do the same.

"Of course she's fine. She's a …"

"Sano!" Megumi, Kamatari, Katsu, and Kenshin scream at him, stopping him from saying any more.

"She's a what?" Tomoe asks, confused and looking to Kenshin for an answer.

"I'm gonna check on her," he says, making his way down.

-

"Does it hurt?" the medic asks as he prodes her knee. Kaoru just pushes him away and hops up on her own.

"My knee is fine. Let me take the kick so I can show them who is the better player," she says getting up and wiping some blood off her leg with her hand.

"That guy is twice your size Kamiya and slammed his cleats into your knee. You should get it checked out," Koji comments out of the group around her.

"Don't worry Kamiya. I'm decent at kicking penalties," one of her team members says. Standing with Koji's help, she places her hand on the guys shoulder.

"Alright," she says, a slight glowing happening under the area where her hand lies before taking it away and heading towards the bench. '_That should help him out._'

-

"How does your knee feel?" the medic asks again now that Kaoru has been moved onto her bench, her injured leg spread out flat.

"It's fine like I said before. Now move so I can see the kick,' she says, pushing the man who keeps blocking the view of the goal.

"Kaoru, are you okay?" Kenshin asks as he approaches the bench, worried about his partner.

"I'm fine Kenshin. You should know that."

"I'm gonna wrap it, but we really should get you to a hospital to check it out," he says, getting supplies from his bag.

"No hospital," Kaoru says, suddenly forgetting about the kick.

"Why not?"

"My knee is fine. Trust me."

"Still…"

_'Come on Kenshin. Make something convincing_,' he thinks to himself, trying to figure out a way to explain the reasoning for Kaoru not going to a human hospital. "She can't. Kaoru's family doesn't believe in modern medicine. Sending her to the hospital and having a doctor check on her would be against her beliefs."

"That's right. After all these years, I've been able to figure out when something's wrong with my body. Now move so I can see."

-

"Finally. After so long, we finally win first place. It feels amazing," Matt says, packing up his gear.

"Hey Kamiya, you feel okay?" Enishi asks as Kaoru takes off the ice pack that was placed on her knee.

"You didn't really think that a kick from some guy like him would do any real damage, did you?"

"It looked painful to me," Koji comments as the others agree.

"We should get you to uncle's now. I'm sorry to cut this short Tomoe," Kenshin says to Tomoe as he helps Kaoru up as a gesture to remind her to act like she was somewhat injured. The rest of group joined them, to check on Kaoru.

"It's alright."

"You're not coming with us Kamiya?" Matt asks. "You have to."

"I don't think that would be a good idea. I should really get Kaoru to the family doctor to take a look at her knee," Kenshin says.

"But Kenshin…" Kaoru comments, trying to give a puupy eyed face to guilt him.

"He's right. You should get that knee checked out even if its nothing. I'm sure they'll be other times to eat out," Enishi comments, making things seem more final.

"Alright," she says.

"Yo Kenshin. You should finish your date with Tomoe. We can take Kaoru," Sano suggests, the others agreeing with him.

"Are you sure?"

"Go on ahead. You just have to tell us all about it tomorrow," Megumi says, her lips curling up.

-

"I can't believe the weekend is already done. I hate school," Kaoru says as she drags herself behind the three other students.

"Then why did you enroll?" Kenshin asks.

"Because there was nothing better to do," Kaoru comments, trying to kick a pebble at Kenshin.

"Kamiya."

"Enishi, hey. How was the celebration?" Kaoru asks, walking towards Enishi as he stands by one of the front trees with some of the other guys, holding a paper bag.

"It went well. The guys missed that you weren't there. But we bought you something as a token." He presents her with the bag, which Kaoru takes and peers into. Inside, what resembles a small chocolate cake.

"Yum. Food is always the best present. Ooh and it's cake. Even better. Thanks."

"No problem. Some of the guys are going to play a few games this weekend for fun, if you wanna join." Kaoru looks over towards her tamer, who look straight back.

"Ask me Friday. I may have a better idea by then."

"Alright then. I'll see you around," he says, waving off and going back to his group.

"Bye." She quickly returns to her group, unaware of those around her.

"Hey missy, don't look now, but you may have just gotten yourself a group that's out for your head," Sano says, laying his arm around her shoulders, proud of her.

"Huh?"

"About half the school was looking at your exchange with Enishi. He gave you a present, even if it wasn't from him exactly."

"Well screw them. I'll take anything they dish out. But right now, I got myself lunch and dessert and that ain't half bad."

Hope it was worth the wait. These things seem to be getting longer.


	6. Halloween

The Tale of a Tamer and His Dog God

Chapter Six

Halloween

-

On a nice fall day, three dog gods sit outside an apartment building.

"So, what should we do?" Kaoru asks.

"I don't know. There's nothing exciting happening," Katsu comments, earning a sigh from all three.

"What are you three doing out here?" The three look up all to see the landlord of the house with a bag of groceries.

"We're bored," Kaoru states.

"I see."

"Is something wrong Miss Tae?" Kamatari asks.

"We're having some issues with this year's haunted house. We didn't make as much as we wanted to last year, and the person who usually organizes things had to leave to go tend to a sick relative. At this point, we're not really sure what's going to happen to it. We may have to cancel it."

"That's no good. I loved the haunted house, even if it was cheesy," Katsu says. Suddenly, Kaoru pops up from her position with an idea.

"We can do it."

"What?" the two other dog gods ask.

"We can organize it. I mean, the haunted house is geared to the younger generation, so we should know what needs to be included. Leave it to us Miss Tae. It will be the best haunted house ever."

"How can you possibly organize a haunted house in a week?" Tae asks. Kaoru looks at her two companions, large grins appearing on their faces.

"Trust us. We're more than meets the eye."

-

"Look at those two. Ah young love," Megumi says from her spot at the lunch table she shares with Kaoru and Sano. They watch Kenshin and Tomoe at another table, sharing lunch with some of her friends.

"You're kidding right? They've only started going out. They can't possibly be in love," Sano comments.

"Love is a strange thing. You can never predict when it happens."

"Do dog gods fall in love like humans do?" Sano asks Kaoru, who has been silent for a while.

"I'm not really sure. I was a rogue, so I'm probably not the best to ask."

"Well then, what are you going to do this weekend for Halloween?" Sano asks.

"Go to the haunted house of course," Megumi answers.

"I'm probably gonna go off and cause some mischief. That's what Halloween is all about right?" Kaoru states, earning a look from the two others.

"Does Kenshin know this?" Megumi asks.

"Of course not. Knowing him, he'll go out with Tomoe and I'll be all by myself. Don't worry, I'm sure Katsu and Kamatari will keep me in line." The two humans look at each other and with a shrug, continue eating.

-

"So this is what we have to work with?" Kaoru asks as she, Katsu, and Kamatari look at the large room that will be turned into the house, supplies scattered everywhere.

"Miss Tae also gave us a list of stuff they already have to work off of," Kamatari says, re-reading the list.

"With that and our special abilities, we'll make this a haunted house to remember. Now, this is what I see."

-

As Kenshin sits in his apartment, doing what looks like homework, someone knocks on the door. Stopping what he is doing, he heads towards the door and opens it, revealing Tae on the other end. "Kenshin, how are you today?"

"I'm fine Miss Tae. Can I help you with anything?"

"I was wondering if Kaoru was around?"

"I'm afraid not. In fact, I'm not really sure where she is," he says, scratching his head a bit in confusion and what he just realized.

"Well then, can you tell her that I stopped by and just wanted to ask her a few questions?"

"Sure thing," he says. 'What does she want to talk to Kaoru about?'

-

"I'm so excited Kenshin. The haunted house is my favorite part of Halloween. I do hope its better than last year though," Tomoe says as the two enter the center that is holding the event. As they approach the entrance, they overhear the conversation of some other teenagers in front of them.

"Dude. I heard that this is scariest thing ever. Even better then all those horror movies."

"I heard that someone screamed so loud and so much, that they lost their voice by the end of it."

"It looks like the house is a huge hit this year," Kenshin says as Tomoe nods her head in agreement.

"Hey Kenshin. Tomoe. You're heading towards the house?" Sano asks as he and Megumi heads towards the couple.

"Yeah. I couldn't call it Halloween if I didn't go through," Tomoe says.

"Mind if we join you then?" Sano asks, swinging his arm around Megumi, who then swats it off.

-

From another corner, Kamatari peaks out in a princess costume, walkie-talkie in hand. "Hey Kaoru. Kenshin, Sano, Megumi and that Tomoe girl are heading our way," Kamatari reports. Snickering is heard through the line before an answer is given.

"Alright then. Let's give them a scare they'll never forget. Operation Open Door is about to begin."

-

"This is definitely scarier than last year," Megumi comments, looking around the dark space.

"How did they get that bat to fly around like that? It really looked like it was going to attack me," Tomoe says, grabbing onto Kenshin's arm tighter. Suddenly the three tamers stop.

"Did you guys just feel that?" Sano asks.

"I think I did," Megumi comments, rubbing her arms for warmth. "Is it me, or did it just drop a few degrees in here?"

"I don't like the feeling I'm getting here. It's way too real."

"Let's just hope that we're near the end. _There's something off about this place._"

"Don't tell me you simple mortals are so willing to leave," a head on the floor says, rising, turning into a body covered in shadows, with bat like wings at full spread on either side.

"Wow. They're really putting out all the stops this year," Tomoe comments, her voice shaking a bit.

"Except for the fact that doesn't feel like a normal human," Kenshin says, the two other tamers coming to his side.

"I find it offensive that you would think of myself like one of you. I'll just have to prove that I'm not," the being says, disappearing only to appear behind Tomoe, taking out a claw and pricking her skin, before disappearing again.

"Ow. That thing just cut me," she says, feeling for the droplets of blood.

"This isn't good at all. This might just be a real demon."

"What do you think we should do fox lady? You're the one that usually comes up with the plans."

"We can't do anything with Tomoe here. Our best bet is to get in touch with the others." The unknown demon appears in front again, both hands flexing at its side, showing its claws.

"I grow tired of you. You're all just so boring. Maybe you'll be more fun in a couple of days."

"What are you talking about?" Megumi asks. At that point, a door opens beneath them, sending all of them into a downfall, the demon looking down on them. They all scream, waiting for the ground to meet them and trying to find a way to stop when suddenly, it feels like they stop. After looking around, they find themselves in the same spot they were in before it all happened.

"What just happened?" Kenshin asks as they all become confused.

"I have no idea."

"My cut is gone."

"How in the world did they get that type of illusion working? No wonder everyone has been so scared on their way out of here," Megumi comments. As they think about it, the image of a certain dog god comes to Kenshin's mind.

"Illusion? It better not be."

"What did you say Kenshin?" Tomoe asks.

"Nothing important. We should probably get a move on if we don't want to get trapped in something like that again.

-

"That was amazing Kaoru. You had them all freaked out. Their faces were priceless," Katsu says, laughing over the communication.

"I wish I could have seen it."

"I really am that good."

-

"I've never been so terrified in my life. I'm gonna find the restroom. I'll be right back," Tomoe says before giving Kenshin a kiss on the cheek and leaving.

"Alright."

"So Kenshin, what's the rush?" Sano asks.

"Three dog gods that's what. _Kaoru, get out here right now. And bring the others with you._" A few seconds later, three dog gods walk into the open, Katsu and Kaoru in all black as if they were part of the house.

"Hi Kenshin. Hey Sano, Megumi."

"You. Me. Now," he says, dragging Kaoru outside.

"What was that about?"

"What was what?" Kaoru asks, trying to play innocent.

"I know it was you. It was all of you. But mostly you playing all those tricks on all the visitors."

"Yeah so?"

"So, everyone is gonna wonder how those tricks were done and no one is gonna have an answer," Kenshin says, pacing back and forth in front of her.

"Actually, we do. We set up some computers with some software that Katsu likes to work with. Then we put up some smoke generators, mirrors, projectors, and speakers all hidden through the scenery so that no one would see them. The people who helped out seemed to be convinced that all the things happened because of strategic planning. See, I'm not that stupid," Kaoru comments, acting as she has the answers to everything.

"Still, you were careless and jeopardized your true identity."

"Give me a break. This is probably the one time I can be myself. Halloween is all about magic and tricks. And that's all anyone thought it was. Now if you excuse me, I have a haunted house to run." She turns around and heads back into the building, Kenshin following her not having finished the conversation.

"Kaoru, get back here. I'm not done talking with you."

"Well I'm done talking with you. See you at the apartment. Katsu. Kamatari."

"We need to get back to work. See you at home," Katsu says before running towards Kaoru. Kenshin returns to the group watching them leave.

"So it was missy? You really got yourself a partner man."

"What have I gotten myself into?"

-

"Hi Miss Tae. You haven't seen Kaoru around have you?" Kenshin asks as he, Sano and Megumi wait by the exit of the house. Kenshin had taken Tomoe home earlier saying that he needed to do something. 

"I think she's helping with some of the cleanup. You here to pick her up?"

"Yeah."

"Those three are life savers. It really was a miracle that I saw them on the step that day," she comments, continuing to clean her section

"What are you talking about?" Megumi asks.

"The other day, I saw Kaoru, Katsu and Kamatari on the stairs and after I told them the problem with no one being able to organize the haunted house, they volunteered and put together the best haunted house we've even had. I had never seen so much money from collections. We had to stop at one point and actually empty out the collection box so many people kept coming back in. And that's not even including the collections from the children's haunted house. The children's hospital is going to be so pleased."

"Hey Tae, we could use your help here if you're done," a woman shouts from a few feet down as she tries to pick up a large box.

"Coming."

"So what are you going to do now Kenshin? You can't really punish Kaoru for using her powers for good can you? Especially when her ideas raised such a large amount of money that going towards a children's hospital," Megumi says. "That would be setting a bad example."

"And no one was suspicious of what really happened. They all thought it was technology and stuff."

"Why does life have to be so complicated?"

"Are you here to escort me home? Afraid I'm going to do something wrong again?"

"Kaoru. I'm sorry for reacting like that. You actually did something good. I'm just scared that someone may past and find you doing something that they can't explain."

"I'm not stupid Kenshin. I can watch my own back thank you very much. You ready to head back? I'm ready to sleep for the next day or so. Playing tricks on humans is a lot of work."


End file.
